It goes to the late JL… and that’s without feeling particularly spiritual myself.

00.41

NEW ORDER – Stray Dog – Music Complete, LP – Mute – 2015

When you’re a New Order fan of 37 years standing it’s not easy taking to a guest vocalist – even if (or, especially when?) the voice is as distinctive as Mr Pop’s. I’ll bet Hooky would have liked to have been involved with this one.

Born Vicki Anderson, with her being the mother of Carleen and Jhelisa Anderson singing obviously runs in the family. As Myra B she was part of The James Brown Revue and it’s Brown’s simple but distinctive keyboard line that sets this monster in place. You’ll need the 1989 UK Urban label 12″ to get the two parts back into one track but it feels right to visually showcase the track’s original single-split-over-two-sides source.

29.12

THE IDES OF MARCH – Vehicle – 7″ – Warner Brothers – 1970

Punchy brass-lead monster, in the vein of early Chicago hits, I’m A Man and 25 or 6 To 4. Still cuts it in various circles.

32.04

JON LUCIEN – Search For The Inner Self – 7″ – Ampex – 1971

For me, the late JL’s finest moment, and assuming my time isn’t up too soon I’ll get to treat myself to an original 7″ copy of this at some point.

The sort of cool vocal match up that sibling pairings bring, Deirdre and Louise Rutkowski went on to release a more polished version of this on CBS but this version of (in reality) Curtis Mayfield’s Diamond In The Back definitely shades it for me. I bought a couple of Robert King’s Glasgow-based Pleasantly Surprised tapes back in the day, though I’ve only got half of this one still… and just the cassette. No case – the sort of release, though, that might have been partly responsible for putting the idea in my head for the Rorschach Testing Discreet Campaigns cassette.

Below: Sunset Gun’s early days history, as documented with their track, Gotta Have Me Go With You, included on the Pleasantly Surprised label’s debut release, the 1982 various artists cassette, An Hour Of Eloquent Sounds.

There’d be a sizeable audience for this crew getting back in action, should it ever happen.

44.02

STEALING SHEEP – Love – Not Real, LP – Heavenly – 2015

A verrrrry late entry, as the podcast was finished before I realised 10,000 Maniacs Pit Viper was just about to get an unintended second 41 Rooms run out. Segueing (that don’t look right… ) in a replacement is tricky. Still, this Liverpool trio came off the sub’s bench and scored a winner, and the turquoise coloured vinyl is as good as it gets for me. My vinyl album is round these parts… somewhere.

47.49

ETIENNE DE CRÉCY – Scratched – 10″, promo only – XL Recordings – 2001

This knocked my socks off when I first heard it. Definitely a Kiss FM tune, with guest vocalist, the late Belita Woods sounding a bit Billie Holiday-like – and none the worse for it. Very cool.

51.04

SUPERSTARS OF ROCK – Strobelight Serenade – 12″ – Related – 1997

There’s some sexual tension going on and the ‘Cruising’ topic crops up on both sides of this after dark electronic gem. For years I wasn’t even sure it was a female vocal!

Out of Manchester and previously known as Stranger Son of WB (White Box, the label?).

01.13.52

THE AEROVONS – World Of View – 7″ – Parlaphone – 1969

A track worthy of the Beatles, I’d say… if they’d written and/or recorded it. I’ve pictured the ‘demo(nstration)’ 7″ – usually pressed in the very few hundreds and distributed to radio, TV and the media of the day – as coming across these of any single I was after as a teenager was a bit of an extra thrill. Either this or the stock copy, though, is likely to cost you over £100 these days.

Alternatively, in more recent years RPM put out a CD of the band’s original 1969 Abbey Road recordings and possibly via some other route a run of 200 hand numbered ‘Test Record’ vinyl albums also exists – the latter nearly matching the cost of grabbing this 7″.

01.16.19

THE GODS – Hey Bulldog– 7″ – Columbia – 1969

They would become Uriah Heap (not a name you’ll hear here too often) but back in their earlier, more youthful days covering this Beatles tune was seen as a good move. Another £100 7″ if in near mint condition. More importantly, a top cover.

Having a stronger voice than some of her mid sixties peers didn’t guarantee Ms Rossi any success beyond this hit – as good as it was. If you head to Youtube you’ll find the UK south coast housewife has in more recent years been captured at various private parties knocking out a cover version or two on a DJ’s mic… and the girl’s still got the voice.

Up to date and the Bridgeport based vehicle for friend, Lucy Underhill. Apart from the yellow vinyl, Discogs notes ‘hand screen-printed artwork (I might know who printed that). Additionally an individual download code is attached to white inner sleeve for 4 songs digital release “The Kick EP’. Also hand numbered (mine’s 48), I seemed to miss out on the download. Lucy? Lucy!!

01.25.28

THOMAS DYBDAHL- From Grace– 7″ – Last Suppa – 2009

Here’s more hand numbered goings on. Over to Discogs again: ‘Limited edition of 500 hand-numbered and signed copies with offset cover with additional spray painted front picture. There is also a limited version of 60 hand numbered + autographed. The artist made both version himself‘. 500 hand numbered on the back and 60 copies hand numbered on the back and signed on the front. One assumes then, there are 560 7″ copies of this fab single out there somewhere.

01.29.26

SHAWN PHILLIPS – She Was Waitin’ For Her Mother At The Station In Torino And You Know I Love You Baby But It’s Getting Too Heavy To Laugh – Second Contribution, LP – A&M – 1970

To save time, occasionally referred to as ‘Woman (She Was Waiting For Her Mother)’. An awesome piece of music, aligned to the track somewhere on Youtube, there is a really quite moving/poignant anecdote/comment from a fan, that I’ll print here… as and when I can find it again.

01.34.03

JOHN TURRELL – Wrong Time – The King Maker, CD only – The Big Chill Label – 2013

Another guy who… has… a… voice.

01.37.15

KEVIN YOST – Conquistadors (Main Sail Mix) – 12″ – i! Records – 2000

I first heard this on a maybe late 90s Ross Allen radio show – possibly Kiss FM once again – and for some reason I thought I caught that it was The Strawbs (!?!?) Very Confused of Islington… and no Shazam to help out back then.

01.46.49

ELEKTRONS – Joy – Red Light, Don’t Stop, 2LP – Wall Of Sound – 2007

Yet more genius ‘rippling’-type rhythms – this time augmented in no small way by soul-jazz vocal gun for hire, Pete Simpson. Beautiful.

Bearing a title you won’t likely find being duplicated on Spotify etc any time soon, hearing this track for the first time way back then certainly pricked up the ears. Even as the UK’s progressive scene was pushing house music’s envelope, I thought this was laying down an extra marker.

Episode Archive

Episode 52 – 4.2.18

PLAYLIST 52 Uploaded Feb 4, 2018 41 Rooms’ Playlist 52 is 91% vinyl friendly. Near perfect The tracks marked * have been given either a tiny or a slightly larger 41 Rooms ‘tweak’/edit/chop/etc. Lyric of Playlist 52: ‘Getting Up Is Not As Easy As Getting Down […]

Episode 51 – 7.1.18

PLAYLIST 51 41 Rooms’ Playlist 51 is 85% vinyl friendly. Impressive. Have a cuppa! The tracks marked * have been given either a tiny or a slightly larger 41 Rooms ‘tweak’/edit/chop/etc and one track certainly is very sonically challenged. Lyric of Playlist 51: Mudriczki and Mackenzie tie. ‘You know I’ve been blinded out on a […]

Episode 49 – 10.12.17

PLAYLIST 49 41 Rooms’ Playlist 49 is 89% vinyl friendly. Impressive. Any track marked * has been given a tiny 41 Rooms ‘tweak’/edit/chop/etc… Lyric of Playlist 49: Sometimes you’ve just got to keep it simple, real and heartfelt. Come on down, Daniel V. 00.41 NEW ORDER – Ruined In A Day (Reunited In A Day […]

Episode 47 – 12.11.17

PLAYLIST 47 41 Rooms’ Playlist 47 is 85% vinyl friendly. Impressive. Tracks marked * have been given a tiny (or sometimes, slightly bigger) 41 Rooms ‘tweak’/edit/chop/etc… Lyric of Playlist 47: ‘A knife and a fork, a bottle and a cork. That’s the way to spell New York.’ Of course it is. 00.41 NEW ORDER – […]

Episode 46 – 29.10.17

PLAYLIST 46 41 Rooms’ Playlist 46 is 88% vinyl friendly. Impressive. The Hurricane Ophelia Set! A day after I uploaded show 45 I experienced my first hurricane. Mostly, it wasn’t what some experience in other parts of the world but with no internet my time was best spent getting show 46 under way early. In […]

Episode 45 – 15.10.17

PLAYLIST 45 41 Rooms’ Playlist 45 is 90% vinyl friendly. Near perfect. Tracks marked * have been given a tiny (or sometimes, slightly bigger) 41 Rooms ‘tweak’/edit/chop/etc… Lyric of Playlist 45: Their styles and the worlds they’ve written in feel lifetimes apart but it’s a dead heat between Hal David and Alex Turner. 00.41 NEW […]

Episode 44 – 1.10.17

PLAYLIST 44 41 Rooms’ Playlist 44 is 83% vinyl friendly. Impressive. Tracks marked * have been given a tiny (or sometimes, slightly bigger) 41 Rooms ‘tweak’/edit/chop/etc… and a few sound a bit sonically challenged. Lyric of Playlist 44: It goes to the late JL… and that’s without feeling particularly spiritual myself. 00.41 NEW ORDER – […]

Episode 40 – 6.8.17

PLAYLIST 40 41 Rooms’ Playlist 40 is 96% vinyl friendly. Sooooo close! Tracks marked * have been given a tiny (or sometimes, slightly bigger) 41 Rooms ‘tweak’/edit/chop/whatever… Lyric of Playlist 40: A slight cop out but a bit of consciousness from the the brothers gets it. and a cursory nod to the ‘Title of Playlist’ […]

Episode 39 – 23.7.17

PLAYLIST 39 41 Rooms’ Playlist 39 is 94% vinyl friendly. Near perfect. Tracks marked * have been given a tiny (or sometimes, slightly bigger) 41 Rooms ‘tweak’/edit/chop/whatever… and Please Note: This edition certainly has one track with a few profanities. If you’re of a certain disposition, be aware. Lyric of Playlist 39: G-SH’s, here in the […]

Episode 38 – 9.7.17

PLAYLIST 38 41 Rooms’ Playlist 38 is 87% vinyl friendly. Impressive. Tracks marked * have been given a tiny (or sometimes, slightly bigger) 41 Rooms ‘tweak’/edit/chop/whatever… Lyric of Playlist 38: ‘Do you work at a job you despise? Do you live with cockroaches? Have you been mugged lately? Did your favorite jeans shrink in the wash? […]

Episode 37 – 25.6.17

PLAYLIST 37 41 Rooms’ Playlist 37 is 93% vinyl friendly. Near perfect. Will we get there one day? Tracks marked * have been given a tiny (or sometimes, slightly bigger) 41 Rooms ‘tweak’/edit/chop/whatever… and a couple of tracks are slightly sonically challenged. Lyric of Playlist 37: For the sheer cockiness – ‘Leeds… Detroit… Berlin… New […]

Episode 36 – 11.6.17

PLAYLIST 36 41 Rooms’ Playlist 36 is 83% vinyl friendly. Impressive. Just so you know, one or two tracks are slightly sonically challenged. Lyric of Playlist 36: The Speeka boys maybe speak best here… 00.41 NEW ORDER – Age Of Consent – Power, Corruption & Lies, LP – Factory Records – 1983 Lead track from the album […]

Episode 34 – 14.5.17

PLAYLIST 34 My niece’s growing love of vinyl meant acquiring her first means of playing the stuff – so, for this edition it’s one of these! 41 Rooms’ Playlist 34 is 76% vinyl friendly. Not bad. A Word Of Warning: A couple of tracks in this show are slightly ‘sonically challenged’. Tracks marked * have been […]

Episode 29 – 5.3.17

PLAYLIST 29 41 Rooms’ Playlist 29 is 79% vinyl friendly. Not bad. NB: One of the tracks is a bit sonically challenged, though it seems like it was just recorded that way… and the show nearly got abandoned when I lost the whole audio on Thursday afternoon and had to start from scratch again… not good, […]

Episode 25 – 8.1.17

PLAYLIST 25 41 Rooms’ Playlist 25 is 93% VINYL FRIENDLY. Near perfect. OK, ears! One track is sonically challenged with some bad language and another is… well, just sonically challenged. ‘Lyric’ of Playlist 25: It could have been the hip hop dons cutting and pasting George Bush Sr to great effect, or indeed Master Morrissey […]

Episode 24 – 25.12.16

PLAYLIST 24 41 Rooms’ Playlist 24 is 80% VINYL FRIENDLY. Impressive. Lyric of Playlist 24: ‘It’s alright ’cause the historical pattern has shown, how the economical cycle tends to revolve… ‘ Catchy! You’re in a different space when you layer a cheery tune with this level of observation on recession. 00.00 (Intro) THE FLAMINGOS – […]

Episode 21 – 13.11.16

PLAYLIST 21 41 Rooms’ Playlist 21 is 90% VINYL FRIENDLY. Near Perfect. Lyric of Playlist 21: At least I’ve avoided giving it to the late Billy Mac once again… ‘Feel it’s time to pull away, shut your ears to all they say, be yourself you know it’s true, when in the end what’s left is you.‘ […]

Episode 20 – 30.10.16

PLAYLIST 20 41 Rooms’ Playlist 20 is 81% VINYL FRIENDLY. Impressive. Lyric of Playlist 20: ‘Crack may seem cool, it may seem good, it’s the quickest way to kill a neighbo(u)rhood‘. Different era, different means, but no doubt some equivalent result going on somewhere right now. Tracks marked * have been given a tiny (or […]

Episode 16 – 4.9.16

PLAYLIST 16 41 Rooms’ Playlist 16 is 82% VINYL FRIENDLY. Impressive. There’s a bit of a croaky voice and fuzzy head thing going on in this show, apologies. I had to record it at 6.30am when I woke and felt a cold and my voice wavering a bit. It was either that or risk not […]

Episode 12 – 10.7.16 (inc Winkles 1981, Pt 3. More Big Guns)

PLAYLIST 12 is 97% VINYL FRIENDLY. Near perfect! Lyric of Playlist 12: Grandma, your generation believed in talk. Scared of the very steps in which you walked. Father listened to all that was said, until depression set in, leaving mouths unfed… A bit of conscious soul wins it over what could have been here – […]

Episode Nine (inc Winkles 1981: Pt 2) – 29.5.16

PLAYLIST 9 is 93% VINYL FRIENDLY. Near Perfect. Lyric of Playlist 9: ‘Each new hour holds new chances for new beginnings, the horizon leans forward offering you new space to place new steps of change… ‘ Could only be with the poetess… 00.00 (Intro) THE FLAMINGOS – Stars (Edit) – Unreleased demo – 1983 Episode #1 […]

Episode Eight – 15.5.16

PLAYLIST 8 is 85% VINYL FRIENDLY. Impressive. In memory of Rob Gretton, who died seventeen years ago today (May 15). Lyric of Playlist 8: Where’s the harm in voicing your doubt? You’ll find me in the lavatory. And where’s the harm in talking out loud, when I’m on my own? What’s so wrong with reading […]

Episode Six (inc Winkles 1981: Pt 1) – 17.4.16

PLAYLIST 6 is 93% VINYL FRIENDLY. Near perfect. Lyric of Playlist 6: A bit of a tease. The verses either side of ‘But whatever is behind the door, there is nothing much to do. Angel or devil I don’t care. For in front of that door, there is you.’ Tracks marked * have been given […]

Episode Five – 3.4.16

PLAYLIST 5 is 86% VINYL FRIENDLY. Excellent. Lyric of Playlist 5: ‘Television, the drug of the nation, breeding ignorance and feeding radiation. T.V. It satellite links our United States of Unconsciousness. Apathetic, therapeutic and extremely addictive, the methadone metronome pumping out 150 channels 24 hours a day, you can flip through all of them, and still […]

Episode Four – 20.3.16

PLAYLIST 4 is 97% VINYL FRIENDLY. Unlikely it will get any better than that! A Word Of Warning Certainly one track in this show is ‘sonically challenged’… and it’s also the one that contains an expletive or ten. Lyric of Playlist 4: It’s a tie! Either ‘Someone, somewhere says they’ve got it all, but that’s not […]

Episode Three – 6.3.16

PLAYLIST 3 is 85% VINYL FRIENDLY. Impressive. A Word Of Warning: A couple of the tracks in this show are slightly ‘sonically challenged’… and elsewhere an expletive or two will crop up. Lyric of Playlist 3: Maybe unsurprisingly – as it’s a poem – the words to ‘Autumn Rose’. Incorporated into an unknown track in […]

Episode Two – 21.2.16

PLAYLIST 2 is 94% VINYL FRIENDLY. Near perfect. Lyric of Playlist 2: ‘I’ll see you baby when the clans rise again. Women and men united by the struggle going down. With a pocketful of plastic like a dollar on elastic. In this free world. I wouldn’t tell you if I didn’t care’. Tracks marked * […]

Episode One – 7.2.16.

PLAYLIST 1 is 82% VINYL FRIENDLY. Impressive. Lyric of Playlist 1: ‘I wanted to change the world, but I could not even change my underwear. And when the shit got really, really out of hand, I had it all the way up to my hairline, which keeps receding like my self-confidence, as if I ever […]